Nicholas Notovich

7/29/2019 Nicholas Notovich

1/95

The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ

by Nicolas Notovitch

[1890]

THE UNKNOWN LIFE

OF

JESUS CHRISTBy the Discoverer of the Manuscript

NICOLAS NOTOVITCH

Translated by

J. H. CONNELLY and L. LANDSBERG

R. F. FENNO COMPANY

16 East 17 Street

NEW YORK

[1890]


2/95

Title Page

Verso

p. v


3/95


4/95

copies in the great convents or go to Lhassa--a journey which is far from being sodangerous and difficult as is generally supposed, involving only such perils as I wasalready accustomed to, and which would not make me hesitate at attempting it.

During my sojourn at Leh, capital of Ladak, I visited the great convent Himis, situated

near the city, the chief lama of which informed me that their monastic library containedcopies of the manuscripts in question. In order that I might not awaken the suspicions ofthe authorities concerning

p. 10

the object of my visit to the cloister, and to evade obstacles which might be opposed tome as a Russian, prosecuting further my journey in Thibet, I gave out upon my return toLeh that I would depart for India, and so left the capital of Ladak. An unfortunate fall,causing the breaking of a leg, furnished me with an absolutely unexpected pretext forreturning to the monastery, where I received surgical attention. I took advantage of myshort sojourn among the lamas to obtain the consent of their chief that they should bring

to me, from their library, the manuscripts relating to Jesus Christ, and, assisted by myinterpreter, who translated for me the Thibetan language, transferred carefully to mynote-book what the lama read to mc.

Not doubting at all the authenticity of this Preface,

p. 11

chronicle, edited with great exactitude by the Brahminic, and more especially theBuddhistic historians of India and Nepaul, I desired, upon my return to Europe, to publisha translation of it.

To this end, I addressed myself to several universally known ecclesiastics, asking them torevise my notes and tell me what they thought of them.

Mgr. Platon, the celebrated metropolitan of Kiew, thought that my discovery was of greatimportance. Nevertheless, he sought to dissuade me from publishing the memoirs,

believing that their publication could only hurt me. "Why?" This the venerable prelaterefused to tell me more explicitly. Nevertheless, since our conversation took place inRussia, where the censor would

p. 12

have put his veto upon such a work, I made up my mind to wait.

A year later, I found myself in Rome. I showed my manuscript to a cardinal very near tothe Holy Father, who answered me literally in these words:--"What good will it do to

print this? Nobody will attach to it any great importance and you will create a number ofenemies. But, you are still very young! If it is a question of money which concerns you, I


5/95

can ask for you a reward for your notes, a sum which will repay your expenditures andrecompense you for your loss of time." Of course, I refused.

In Paris I spoke of my project to Cardinal Rotelli, whose acquaintance I had made inConstantinople. He, too, was opposed to having my work printed, under the pretext that it

would be premature. "The church,"p. 13

he added, "suffers already too much from the new current of atheistic ideas, and you willbut give a new food to the calumniators and detractors of the evangelical doctrine. I tellyou this in the interest of all the Christian churches."

Then I went to see M. Jules Simon. He found my matter very interesting and advised meto ask the opinion of M. Renan, as to the best way of publishing these memoirs. The nextday I was seated in the cabinet of the great philosopher. At the close of our conversation,M. Renan proposed that I should confide to him the memoirs in question, so that he might

make to the Academy a report upon the discovery.

This proposition, as may be easily understood, was very alluring and flattering to my amour propre. I, however, took away with

p. 14

me the manuscript, under the pretext of further revising it. I foresaw that if I accepted theproposed combination, I would only have the honor of having found the chronicles, whilethe illustrious author of the "Life of Jesus" would have the glory of the publication andthe commenting upon it. I thought myself sufficiently prepared to publish the translation

of the chronicles, accompanying them with my notes, and, therefore, did not accept thevery gracious offer he made to me. But, that I might not wound the susceptibility of thegreat master, for whom I felt a profound respect, I made up my mind to delay publicationuntil after his death, a fatality which could not be far off, if I might judge from theapparent general weakness of M. Renan. A short time after M. Renan's death, I wrote toM. Jules Simon again for

p. 15

his advice. He answered me, that it was my affair to judge of the opportunity for makingthe memoirs public.

I therefore put my notes in order and now publish them, reserving the right to substantiatethe authenticity of these chronicles. In my commentaries I proffer the arguments whichmust convince us of the sincerity and good faith of the Buddhist compilers. I wish to addthat before criticising my communication, the societies ofsavans can, without muchexpense, equip a scientific expedition having for its mission the study of thosemanuscripts in the place where I discovered them, and so may easily verify their historicvalue.


6/95

NICOLAS NOTOVITCH.

p. 16 p. 17

THE UNKNOWN LIFE OF JESUS

CHRIST.

A JOURNEY IN THIBET.

During my sojourn in India, I often had occasion to converse with the Buddhists, and theaccounts they gave me of Thibet excited my curiosity to such an extent that I resolved tomake a journey into that still almost unknown country. For this purpose I set out upon a

route crossing Kachmyr (Cashmere), which I had long intended to visit.p. 18

On the 14th of October, 1887, I entered a railway car crowded with soldiers, and wentfrom Lahore to Raval-Pindi, where I arrived the next day, near noon. After resting a littleand inspecting the city, to which the permanent garrison gives the aspect of a militarycamp, I provided myself with the necessaries for a journey, where horses take the placeof the railway cars. Assisted by my servant, a colored man of Pondichery, I packed all my

baggage, hired a tonga (a two-wheeled vehicle which is drawn by two horses), stowedmyself upon its back seat, and set out upon the picturesque road leading to Kachmyr, anexcellent highway, upon which we travelled rapidly. We had to use no little skill inmaking our way through the ranks of a military caravan--its baggage carried uponcamels--which was part of a detachment

p. 19

returning from a country camp to the city. Soon we arrived at the end of the valley ofPendjab, and climbing up a way with infinite windings, entered the passes of theHimalayas. The ascent became more and more steep. Behind us spread, like a beautiful

panorama, the region we had just traversed, which seemed to sink farther and fartheraway from us. As the sun's last glances rested upon the tops of the mountains, our tongacame gaily out from the zigzags which the eye could still trace far down the forest-clad

slope, and halted at the little city of Mur where the families of the English functionariescome to seek shade and refreshment.

Ordinarily, one can go in a tonga from Mur to Srinagar but at the approach of the winterseason, when all Europeans desert

p. 20


7/95

[paragraph continues] Kachmyr, the tonga service is suspended. I undertook my journeyprecisely at the time when the summer life begins to wane, and the Englishmen whom Imet upon the road, returning to India, were much astonished to see me, and made vainefforts to divine the purpose of my travel to Kachmyr.

Abandoning the tonga, I hired saddle-horses--not without considerable difficulty--andevening had arrived when we started to descend from Mur, which is at an altitude of5,000 feet. This stage of our journey had nothing playful in it. The road was torn in deepruts by the late rains, darkness came upon us and our horses rather guessed than saw theirway. When night had completely set in, a tempestuous rain surprised us in the opencountry, and, owing to the thick foliage of the centennarian oaks which stood on the

p. 21

sides of our road, we were plunged in profound darkness. That we might not lose eachother, we had to continue exchanging calls from time to time. In this impenetrableobscurity we divined huge masses of rock almost above our heads, and were conscious

of, on our left, a roaring torrent, the waters of which formed a cascade we could not see.During two hours we waded in the mud and the icy rain had chilled my very marrow,when we perceived in the distance a little fire, the sight of which revived our energies.But how deceitful are lights in the mountains! You believe you see the fire burning quitenear to you and at once it disappears, to re-appear again, to the right, to the left, above,

below you, as if it took pleasure in playing tricks upon the harassed traveller. All the timethe road makes a thousand turns,

p. 22

and winds here and there, and the fire--which is immovable--seems to be in continual

motion, the obscurity preventing you realizing that you yourself modify your directionevery instant.

I had quite given up all hope of approaching this much-wished-for fire, when it appearedagain, and this time so near that our horses stopped before it.

I have here to express my sincere thanks to the Englishmen for the foresight of whichthey gave proof in building by the road-sides the little bengalows--one-story houses forthe shelter of travellers. It is true, one must not demand comfort in this kind of hotel butthis is a matter in which the traveller, broken down by fatigue, is not exacting, and he isat the summit of happiness when he finds at his disposal a clean and dry room.

p. 23

The Hindus, no doubt, did not expect to sec a traveller arrive at so late an hour of thenight and in this season, for they had taken away the keys of the bengalow, so we had toforce an entrance. I threw myself upon a bed prepared for me, composed of a pillow and

blanket saturated with water, and almost at once fell asleep. At daybreak, after taking teaand some conserves, we took up our march again, now bathed in the burning rays of the


8/95

sun. From time to time, we passed villages the first in a superb narrow pass, then alongthe road meandering in the bosom of the mountain. We descended eventually to the riverDjeloum (Jhelum), the waters of which flow gracefully, amid the rocks by. which itscourse is obstructed, between rocky walls whose tops in many places seem almost toreach the azure skies of the Himalayas, a

p. 24

heaven which here shows itself remarkably pure and serene.

Toward noon we arrived at the hamlet called Tongue--situated on the bank of the river--which presents an unique array of huts that give the effect of boxes, the openings ofwhich form a faade. Here are sold comestibles and all kinds of merchandise. The placeswarms with Hindus, who bear on their foreheads the variously colored marks of theirrespective castes. Here, too, you see the beautiful people of Kachmyr, dressed in theirlong white shirts and snowy turbans. I hired here, at a good price, a Hindu cabriolet, froma Kachmyrian. This vehicle is so constructed that in order to keep one's seat in it, one

must cross his legs in the Turkish fashion. The seat is so small that it will hold, at most,only two persons. The absence

p. 25

of any support for the back makes this mode of transportation very dangerousnevertheless, I accepted this kind of circular table mounted on two wheels and drawn by ahorse, as I was anxious to reach, as soon as possible, the end of my journey. Hardly,however, had I gone five hundred yards on it, when I seriously regretted the horse I hadforsaken, so much fatigue had I to endure keeping my legs crossed and maintaining myequilibrium. Unfortunately, it was already too late.

Evening was falling when I approached the village of Hori. Exhausted by fatigue rackedby the incessant jolting my legs feeling as if invaded by millions of ants, I had beencompletely incapable of enjoying the picturesque landscape spread before us as we

journeyed along the Djeloum, the banks of which

p. 26

are bordered on one side by steep rocks and on the other by the heavily wooded slopes ofmountains. In Hori I encountered a caravan of pilgrims returning from Mecca.

Thinking I was a physician and Learning my haste to reach Ladak, they invited me to jointhem, which I promised them I would at Srinagar.

I spent an ill night, sitting up in my bed, with a lighted torch in my hand, without closingmy eyes, in constant fear of the stings and bites of the scorpions and centipedes whichswarm in the bengalows. I was sometimes ashamed of the fear with which those vermininspired me nevertheless, I could not fall asleep among them. Where, truly, in man, is the


9/95

line that separates courage from cowardice? I will not boast of my bravery, but I am not acoward, yet the insurmountable

p. 27

fear with which those malevolent little creatures thrilled me, drove sleep from myeyelids, in spite of my extreme fatigue.

Our horses carried us into a flat valley, encircled by high mountains. Bathed as I was inthe rays of the sun, it did not take me long to fall asleep in the saddle. A sudden sense offreshness penetrated and awoke me. I saw that we had already begun climbing amountain path, in the midst of a dense forest, rifts in which occasionally opened to ouradmiring gaze ravishing vistas, impetuous torrents distant mountains cloudless heavensa landscape, far below, of wondrous beauty. All about us were the songs of numberless

brilliantly plumaged birds. We came out of the forest toward noon, descended to a littlehamlet on the bank of the river, and after refreshing ourselves with a

p. 28

light, cold collation, continued our journey. Before starting, I went to a bazaar and triedto buy there a glass of warm milk from a Hindu, who was sitting crouched before a largecauldron full of boiling milk. How great was my surprise when he proposed to me that Ishould take away the whole cauldron, with its contents, assuring me that I had pollutedthe milk it contained! "I only want a glass of milk and not a kettle of it," I said to him.

"According to our laws," the merchant answered me, "if any one not belonging to ourcaste has fixed his eyes for a long time upon one of our cooking utensils, we have towash that article thoroughly, and throw away the food it contains. You have polluted my

milk and no one will drink any more of it, for not only were you not contentedp. 29

with fixing your eyes upon it, but you have even pointed to it with your finger."

I had indeed a long time examined his merchandise, to make sure that it was really milk,and had pointed with my finger, to the merchant, from which side I wished the milk

poured out. Full of respect for the laws and customs of foreign peoples, I paid, withoutdispute, a rupee, the price of all the milk, which was poured in the street, though I hadtaken only one glass of it. This was a lesson which taught me, from now on, not to fix myeyes upon the food of the Hindus.

There is no religious belief more muddled by the numbers of ceremonious laws andcommentaries prescribing its observances than the Brahminic.

While each of the other principal religions has but one inspired book, one Bible, one

p. 30


10/95

[paragraph continues] Gospel, or one Koran--books from which the Hebrew, the Christian and theMusselman draw their creeds--the Brahminical Hindus possess such a great number oftomes and commentaries in folio that the wisest Brahmin has hardly had the time to

peruse one-tenth of them. Leaving aside the four books of the Vedas the Puranas--whichare written in Sanscrit and composed of eighteen volumes--containing 400,000 strophes

treating of law, rights, theogony, medicine, the creation and destruction of the world, etc.the vast Shastras, which deal with mathematics, grammar, etc. the Upa-Vedas,Upanishads, Upo-Puranas--which are explanatory of the Puranas--and a number of othercommentaries in several volumes there still remain twelve vast books, containing thelaws of Manu, the grandchild of Brahma--books dealing

p. 31

not only with civil and criminal law, but also the canonical rules--rules which imposeupon the faithful such a considerable number of ceremonies that one is surprised intoadmiration of the illimitable patience the Hindus show in observance of the preceptsinculcated by Saint Manu. Manu was incontestably a great legislator and a great thinker,

but he has written so much that it has happened to him frequently to contradict himself inthe course of a single page. The Brahmins do not take the trouble to notice that, and the

poor Hindus, whose labor supports the Brahminic caste, obey servilely their clergy,whose prescriptions enjoin upon them never to touch a man who does not belong to theircaste, and also absolutely prohibit a stranger from fixing his attention upon anything

belonging to a Hindu. Keeping himself to

p. 32

the strict letter of this law, the Hindu imagines that his food is polluted when it receives alittle protracted notice from the stranger.

And yet, Brahminism has been, even at the beginning of its second birth, a purelymonotheistic religion, recognizing only one infinite and indivisible God. As it came to

pass in all times and in all religions, the clergy took advantage of the privileged situationwhich places them above the ignorant multitude, and early manufactured various exteriorforms of cult and certain laws, thinking they could better, in this way, influence andcontrol the masses. Things changed soon, so far that the principle of monotheism, ofwhich the Vedas have given such a clear conception, became confounded with, or, as itwere, supplanted by an absurd

p. 33

and limitless series of gods and goddesses, half-gods, genii and devils, which wererepresented by idols, of infinite variety but all equally horrible-looking. The people, onceglorious as their religion was once great and pure, now slip by degrees into completeidiocy. Hardly does their day suffice for the accomplishment of all the prescriptions oftheir canons. It must be said positively that the Hindus only exist to support their

principal caste, the Brahmins, who have taken into their hands the temporal power whichonce was possessed by independent sovereigns of the people. While governing India, the


11/95

Englishman does not interfere with this phase of the public life, and so the Brahminsprofit by maintaining the people's hope of a better future.

The sun passed behind the summit of a

p. 34

mountain, and the darkness of night in one moment overspread the magnificent landscapewe were traversing. Soon the narrow 'valley of the Djeloum fell asleep. Our road windingalong ledges of steep rocks, was instantly hidden from our sight mountains and treeswere confounded together in one dark mass, and the stars glittered in the celestial vault.We had to dismount and feel our way along the mountain side, for fear of becoming the

prey of the abyss which yawned at our feet. At a late hour of the night we traversed abridge and ascended a steep elevation leading to the bengalow Ouri, which at this heightseems to enjoy complete isolation. The next day we traversed a charming region, alwaysgoing along the river--at a turn of which we saw the ruins of a Sikh fortress, that seemedto

p. 35

remember sadly its glorious past. In a little valley, nestled amid the mountains, we founda bengalow which seemed to welcome us. In its proximity were encamped a cavalryregiment of the Maharajah of Kachmyr.

When the officers learned that I was a Russian, they invited me to share their repast.There I had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of Col. Brown, who was the first tocompile a dictionary of the Afghanpouchton language.

As I was anxious to reach, as soon as possible, the city of Srinagar, I, with little delay,continued my journey through the picturesque region lying at the foot of the mountains,after having, for a long time, followed the course of the river. here, before our eyes,weary of the monotonous desolation of the preceding landscapes, was unfolded a

p. 36

charming view of a well-peopled valley, with many two-story houses surrounded bygardens and cultivated fields. A little farther on begins the celebrated valley of Kachmyr,situated behind a range of high rocks which I crossed toward evening. What a superb

panorama revealed itself before my eyes, when I found myself at the last rock whichseparates the valley of Kachmyr from the mountainous country I had traversed. Aravishing tableau truly enchanted my sight. This valley, the limits of which are lost in thehorizon, and is throughout well populated, is enshrined amid the high Himalayanmountains. At the rising and the setting of the sun, the zone of eternal snows seems asilver ring, which like a girdle surrounds this rich and delightful plateau, furrowed bynumerous rivers and traversed by excellent roads.

p. 37


12/95

[paragraph continues] Gardens, hills, a lake, the islands in which are occupied by constructions ofpretentious style, all these cause the traveller to feel as if he had entered another world. Itseems to him as though he had to go but a little farther on and there must find theParadise of which his governess had told him so often in his childhood.

The veil of night slowly covered the valley, merging mountains, gardens and lake in onedark amplitude, pierced here and there by distant fires, resembling stars. I descended intothe valley, directing myself toward the Djeloum, which has broken its way through anarrow gorge in the mountains, to unite itself with the waters of the river Ind. Accordingto the legend, the valley was once an inland sea a passage opened through the rocksenvironing it, and drained the waters

p. 38

away, leaving nothing more of its former character than the lake, the Djeloum and minorwater-courses. The banks of the river are now lined with boat-houses, long and narrow,which the proprietors, with their families, inhabit the whole year.

From here Srinagar can be reached in one day's travel on horseback but with a boat thejourney requires a day and a half. I chose the latter mode of conveyance, and havingselected a boat and bargained with its proprietor for its hire, took my seat in the bow,upon a carpet, sheltered by a sort of penthouse roof. The boat left the shore at midnight,

bearing us rapidly toward Srinagar. At the stern of the bark, a Hindu prepared my tea. Iwent to sleep, happy in knowing my voyage was to be accomplished. The hot caress ofthe sun's rays penetrating

p. 39

beneath my little roof awakened me, and what I experienced delighted me beyond allexpression. Entirely green banks the distant outlines of mountain tops covered withsnow pretty villages which from time to time showed themselves at the mountain's footthe crystalline sheet of water pure and peculiarly agreeable air, which I breathed withexhilaration the musical carols of an infinity of birds a sky of extraordinary purity

behind me the plash of water stirred by the round-ended paddle which was wielded withease by a superb woman (with marvellous eyes and a complexion browned by the sun),who wore an air of stately indifference: all these things together seemed to plunge meinto an ecstasy, and I forgot entirely the reason for my presence on the river. In thatmoment I had not even a

p. 40

desire to reach the end of my voyage--and yet, how many privations remained for me toundergo, and dangers to encounter! I felt myself here so well content!

The boat glided rapidly and the landscape continued to unfold new beauties before myeyes, losing itself in ever new combinations with the horizon, which merged into themountains we were passing, to become one with them. Then a new panorama would


13/95

display itself, seeming to expand and flow out from the sides of the mountains, becomingmore and more grand. . . . The day was almost spent and I was not yet weary ofcontemplating this magnificent nature, the view of which reawakened the souvenirs ofchildhood and youth. How beautiful were those days forever gone!

The more nearly one approaches Srinagar,p. 41

the more numerous become the villages embowered in the verdure. At the approach ofour boat, some of their inhabitants came running to see us the men in their turbans, thewomen in their small bonnets, both alike dressed in white gowns reaching to the ground,the children in a state of nudity which reminded one of the costumes of our first parents.

When entering the city one sees a range of barks and floating houses in which entirefamilies reside. The tops of the far-off, snow-covered mountains were caressed by the lastrays of the setting sun, when we glided between the wooden houses of Srinagar, which

closely line both banks of the river. Life seems to cease here at sunset the thousands ofmany-colored open boats (dunga) and palanquin-covered barks (bangla) were

p. 42

fastened along the beach men and women gathered near the river, in the primitivecostumes of Adam and Eve, going through their evening ablutions without feeling anyembarrassment or prudery before each other, since they performed a religious rite, theimportance of which is greater for them than all human prejudices.

On the 20th of October I awoke in a neat room, from which I had a gay view upon the

river that was now innundated with the rays of the sun of Kachmyr. As it is not mypurpose to describe here my experiences in detail, I refrain from enumerating the lovelyvalleys, the paradise of lakes, the enchanting islands, those historic palaces, mysterious

pagodas, and coquettish villages which seem lost in vast gardens on all sides of whichrise the majestic tops of the giants of the

p. 43

[paragraph continues] Himalaya, shrouded as far as the eye can see in eternal snow. I shall onlynote the preparations I made in view of my journey toward Thibet. I spent six days atSrinagar, making long excursions into the enchanting surroundings of the city, examiningthe numerous ruins which testify to the ancient prosperity of this region, and studying thestrange customs of the country.

Kachmyr, as well as the other provinces attached to it, Baltistan, Ladak, etc., are vassalsof England. They formerly formed part of the possessions of Randjid Sing, the Lion ofthe Pendjab. At his death, the English troops occupied Lahore, the capital of the Pendjab,


14/95

separated Kachmyr from the rest of the empire and ceded it, under color of hereditaryright and for the sum of 160,000,000

p. 44

francs, to Goulab-Sing, one of the familiars of the late sovereign, conferring on himbesides the title of Maharadja. At the epoch of my journey, the actual Maharadja wasPertab-Sing, the grandchild of Goulab, whose residence is Jamoo, on the southern slopeof the Himalaya.

The celebrated "happy valley" of Kachmyr (eighty-five miles long by twenty-five mileswide) enjoyed glory and prosperity only under the Grand Mogul, whose court loved totaste here the sweetness of country life, in the still existent pavilions on the little island ofthe lake. Most of the Maharadjas of Hindustan used formerly to spend here the summermonths, and to take part in the magnificent festivals given by the Grand Mogul but timeshave greatly changed since, and the happy valley is to-day no more than

p. 45

a beggar-retreat. Aquatic plants and scum have covered the clear waters of the lake thewild juniper has smothered all the vegetation of the islands the palaces and pavilionsretain only the souvenir of their past grandeur earth and grass cover the buildings whichare now falling in ruins. The surrounding mountains and their eternally white tops seemto be absorbed in a sullen sadness, and to nourish the hope of a better time for thedisclosure of their immortal beauties. The once spiritual, beautiful and cleanly inhabitantshave grown animalistic and stupid they have become dirty and lazy and the whip nowgoverns them, instead of the sword.

The people of Kachmyr have so often been subject to invasions and pillages and have hadso many masters, that they have now

p. 46

become indifferent to every thing. They pass their time near the banks of the rivers,gossiping about their neighbors or are engaged in the painstaking work of making theircelebrated shawls or in the execution of filagree gold or silver work. The Kachmyrwomen are of a melancholy temperament, and an inconceivable sadness is spread upontheir features. Everywhere reigns misery and uncleanness. The beautiful men and superbwomen of Kachmyr are dirty and in rags. The costume of the two sexes consists, winterand summer alike, of a long shirt, or gown, made of thick material and with puffedsleeves. They wear this shirt until it is completely worn out, and never is it washed, sothat the white turban of the men looks like dazzling snow near

p. 47

their dirty shirts, which are covered all over with spittle and grease stains.


15/95


16/95

The night had come when we reached the crest we threw ourselves greedily upon thesnow to quench our thirst and after a short rest, started to descend through a very thick

pine forest, hastening to gain the village of Haena, at the foot of the defile, fearing theattacks of beasts of prey in the darkness.

A level and good road leads from Srinagar to Haena, going straight northward overGanderbal, where it turns abruptly to the east, previously keeping close to the Sind, andtraversing a country with a superb vegetation, as far as Kangan. Six miles from there itapproaches the village of Haena, where I repaired by a more direct route

p. 51

across a pass three thousand feet high, which shortened for me both time and distance.

My first step in the unknown was marked by an incident which made all of us pass anugly quarter of an hour. The defile of the Sind, sixty miles long, is especially noteworthyfor the inhospitable hosts it contains. Among others it abounds in panthers, tigers,

leopards, black bears, wolves and jackals. As though by a special misfortune, the snowhad covered with its white carpet the heights of the chain, compelling those formidable,carniverous beasts to descend a little lower for shelter in their dens. We descended insilence, amid the darkness, a narrow path that wound through the centennary firs and

birches, and the calm of the night was only broken by the crackling sound of our steps.Suddenly, quite near to us, a terrible

p. 52

howling awoke the echoes of the woods. Our small troop stopped. "A panther!"exclaimed, in a low and frightened voice, my servant. The small caravan of a dozen men

stood motionless, as though riveted to the spot. Then it occurred to me that at the momentof starting on our ascent, when already feeling fatigued, I had entrusted my revolver toone of the carriers, and my Winchester rifle to another. Now I felt bitter regret for having

parted with my arms, and asked in a low voice where the man was to whom I had giventhe rifle. The howls became more and more violent, and filled the echoes of the woods,when suddenly a dull sound was heard, like the fall of some body. A minute later weheard the noise of a struggle and a cry of agony which mingled with the fierce roars ofthe starved animal.

p. 53

"Saab, take the gun," I heard some one near by. I seized feverishly the rifle, but, vaintrouble, one could not see two steps before oneself. A new cry, followed by a smotheredhowling, indicated to me vaguely the place of the struggle, toward which I crawled,divided between the ardent desire to "kill a panther" and a horrible fear of being eatenalive. No one dared to move only after five minutes it occurred to one of the carriers tolight a match. I then remembered the fear which feline animals exhibit at the presence offire, and ordered my men to gather two or three handfuls of brush, which I set on fire. Wethen saw, about ten steps from us, one of our carriers stretched out on the ground, with


17/95


18/95


19/95


20/95


21/95

p. 67

little plateau, which crosses the way at a distance of two kilometres, to descend into thenarrow valley of Wakkha. Here there are Several villages, among which, on the leftshore, is the very picturesque one called Paskium.

Here my feet trod Buddhist ground. The inhabitants are of a very simple and milddisposition, seemingly ignorant of "quarrelling." Women are very rare among them.Those of them whom I encountered were distinguished from the women I had hithertoseen in India or Kachmyr, by the air of gaiety and prosperity apparent in theircountenances. How could it be otherwise, since each woman in this country has, on anaverage, three to five husbands, and possesses them in the most legitimate way in theworld. Polyandry flourishes here. However

p. 68

large a family may be, there is but one woman in it. if the family does not contain already

more than two husbands, a bachelor may share its advantages, for a consideration. Thedays sacred to each one of those husbands are determined in advance, and all acquitthemselves of their respective duties and respect each others' rights. The men generallyseem feeble, with bent backs, and do not live to old age. During my travels in Ladak, Ionly encountered one man so old that his hair was white.

From Karghil to the centre of Ladak, the road had a more cheerful aspect than that I hadtraversed before reaching Karghil, its prospect being brightened by a number of littlehamlets, but trees and verdure were, unfortunately, rare.

Twenty miles from Karghil, at the end of

p. 69

the defile formed by the rapid current of the Wakkha, is a little village called Chargol, inthe centre of which stand three chapels, decorated with lively colors ( thorthenes, to givethem the name they bear in Thibet). Below, near the river, are masses of rocks, in theform of long and large walls, upon which are thrown, in apparent disorder, flat stones ofdifferent colors and sizes. Upon these stones are engraved all sorts of prayers, in Ourd,Sanscrit and Thibetan, and one can even find among them inscriptions in Arabiccharacters. Without the knowledge of my carriers, I succeeded in taking away a few ofthese stones, which are now in the palace of the Trocadero.

Along the way, from Chargol, one finds frequently oblong mounds, artificialconstructions. After sunrise, with fresh horses,

p. 70

[paragraph continues] I resumed my journey and stopped near the "gonpa" (monastery) ofMoulbek, which seems glued on the flank of an isolated rock. Below is the hamlet ofWakkha, and not far from there is to be seen another rock, of very strange form, which


22/95


23/95


24/95

greater than any one of all the Dalai-Lamas, for he constitutes part of the spirituality ofour Lord. It is he who has instructed you he who brought back into the bosom of God thefrivolous and wicked souls he who made you worthy of the beneficence of the Creator,who has ordained that each being should know good and evil. His name

p. 78

and his acts have been chronicled in our sacred writings, and when reading how his greatlife passed away in the midst of an erring people, we weep for the horrible sin of theheathen who murdered him, after subjecting him to torture."

I was struck by this recital of the lama. The prophet Issa--his tortures and death--ourChristian Dalai-Lama--the Buddhist recognizing Christianity--all these made me thinkmore and more of Jesus Christ. I asked my interpreter not to lose a single word of whatthe lama told me.

"Where can those writings be found, and who compiled them?" I asked the monk.

"The principal scrolls--which were written in India and Nepaul, at different epochs, as theevents happened--are in Lhassa several thousands in number. In

p. 79

some great convents are to be found copies, which the lamas, during their sojourn inLhassa, have made, at various times, and have then given to their cloisters as souvenirs ofthe period they spent with the Dalai-Lama."

"But you, yourselves do you not possess copies of the scrolls bearing upon the prophet

Issa?"

"We have not. Our convent is insignificant, and since its foundation our successive lamashave had only a few hundred manuscripts in their library. The great cloisters have severalthousands of them but they are sacred things which will not, anywhere, be shown toyou."

We spoke together a few minutes longer, after which I went home, all the while thinkingof the lama's statements. Issa, a prophet of the Buddhists! But, how could this be?

p. 80

[paragraph continues] Of Jewish origin, he lived in Palestine and in Egypt and the Gospels donot contain one word, not even the least allusion, to the part which Buddhism shouldhave played in the education of Jesus.

I made up my mind to visit all the convents of Thibet, in the hope of gathering fullerinformation upon the prophet Issa, and perhaps copies of the chronicles bearing upon thissubject.


25/95


26/95

from any further obligation to say prayers themselves.

I sat down on a bench in the hall, where semi-obscurity reigned. The walls weregarnished with little statues of Buddha, books and prayer-wheels. The loquacious lamas

began explaining to me the significance of each object.

"And those books?" I asked them "they, no doubt, have reference to religion."

"Yes, sir. These are a few religious volumes which deal with the primary and principalrites of the life common to all. We possess several parts of the words of Buddhaconsecrated to the Great and Indivisible Divine Being, and to all that issued from hishands."

"Is there not, among those books, some account of the prophet Issa?"

p. 85

"No, sir," answered the monk. "We only possess a few principal treatises relating to theobservance of the religious rites. As for the biographies of our saints, they are collected inLhassa. There are even great cloisters which have not had the time to procure them.Before coming to this gonpa, I was for several years in a great convent on the other sideof Ladak, and have seen there thousands of books, and scrolls copied out of various

books by the lamas of the monastery."

By some further interrogation I learned that the convent in question was near Leh, but mypersistent inquiries had the effect of exciting the suspicions of the lamas. They showedme the way out with evident pleasure, and, regaining my room, I fell asleep--after a lightlunch--leaving orders with my Hindu to inform himself in a skilful way,

p. 86

from some of the younger lamas of the convent, about the monastery in which their chiefhad lived before coming to Lamayure.

In the morning, when we set forth on our journey, the Hindu told me that he could getnothing from the lamas, who were very reticent. I will not stop to describe the life of themonks in those convents, for it is the same in all the cloisters of Ladak. I have seen thecelebrated monastery of Leh--of which I shall have to speak later on--and learned therethe strange existences the monks and religious people lead, which is everywhere the

same. In Lamayure commences a declivity which, through a steep, narrow and sombregorge, extends toward India.

Without having the least idea of the dangers which the descent presented, I sent my

p. 87


27/95


28/95


29/95


30/95


31/95


32/95

a kind of mortar composed of clay and chopped straw. The houses of the settledinhabitants are two stories high, their fronts whitewashed, and their window-sashes

painted with lively colors. The flat roof forms a terrace which is decorated with wildflowers, and here, during good weather, the inhabit, ants spend much of their timecontemplating

p. 105

nature, or turning their prayer-wheels. Every dwelling-house is composed of manyrooms among them always one of superior size, the walls of which are decorated withsuperb fur-skins, and which is reserved for visitors. In the other rooms are beds and otherfurniture. Rich people possess, moreover, a special room filled with all kinds of idols, andset apart as a place of worship.

Life here is very regular. They eat anything attainable, without much choice the principalnourishment of the Ladak people, however, being exceedingly simple. Their breakfastconsists of a piece of rye bread. At dinner, they serve on the table a bowl with meal into

which lukewarm water is stirred with little rods until the mixture assumes the consistencyof thick paste. From this, small portions are scooped out and eaten

p. 106

with milk. In the evening, bread and tea are served. Meat is a superfluous luxury. Onlythe hunters introduce some variety in their alimentation, by eating the meat of wild sheep,eagles or pheasants, which are very common in this country.

During the day, on every excuse and opportunity, they drink "tchang," a kind of pale,unfermented beer.

If it happens that a Ladakian, mounted on a pony (such privileged people are very rare),goes to seek work in the surrounding country, he provides himself with a small stock ofmeal when dinner time comes, he descends to a river or spring, mixes with water, in awooden cup that he always has with him, some of the meal, swallows the simplerefreshment and washes it down with water.

p. 107

The Tchampas, or nomads, who constitute the other part of Ladak's population, arerougher, and much poorer than the settled population. They are, for the most part,hunters, who completely neglect agriculture. Although they profess the Buddhisticreligion, they never frequent the cloisters unless in want of meal, which they obtain inexchange for their venison. They mostly camp in tents on the summits of the mountains,where the cold is very great. While the properly called Ladakians are peaceable, verydesirous of learning, of an incarnated laziness, and are never known to tell untruth theTchampas, on the contrary, are very irascible, extremely lively, great liars and profess agreat disdain for the convents.


33/95

Among them lives the small population of Khombas, wanderers from the vicinity of

p. 108

[paragraph continues] Lhassa, who lead the miserable existence of a troupe of begging gipsies onthe highways. Incapable of any work whatever, speaking a language not spoken in thecountry where they beg for their subsistence, they are the objects of general contempt,and are only tolerated out of pity for their deplorable condition, when hunger drives theirmendicant bands to seek alms in the villages.

Polyandry, which is universally prevalent here, of course interested my curiosity. Thisinstitution is, by the way, not the outcome of Buddha's doctrines. Polyandry existed long

before the advent of Buddha. It assumed considerable proportions in India, where itconstituted one of the most effective means for checking the growth of a populationwhich tends to constant increase, an

p. 109

economic danger which is even yet combatted by the abominable custom of killing new-born female children, which causes terrible ravages in the child-life of India. The effortsmade by the English in their enactments against the suppression of the future mothershave proved futile and fruitless. Manu himself established polyandry as a law, andBuddhist preachers, who had renounced Brahminism and preached the use of opium,imported this custom into Ceylon, Thibet, Corea, and the country of the Moguls. For along time suppressed in China, polyandry, which flourishes in Thibet and Ceylon, is alsomet with among the Kalmonks, between Todas in Southern India, and Nairs on the coast

of Malabar. Traces of this strange constitution of the family are also to be foundp. 110

with the Tasmanians and the Irquois Indians in North America.

Polyandry, by the way, has even flourished in Europe, if we may believe Caesar, who, inhis De Bello Gallico, book V., page 17, writes: "Uxores habent deni duodenique inter secommunes, et maxime fratres cum fratribus et parentes cum liberis."

In view of all this it is impossible to hold any religion responsible for the existence of theinstitution of polyandry. In Thibet it can be explained by motives of an economicalnature the small quantity of arable land falling to the share of each inhabitant. In order tosupport the 1,500,000 inhabitants distributed in Thibet, upon a surface of 1,200,000square kilometres, the Buddhists were forced to adopt polyandry. Moreover, each familyis bound to enter one of its members

p. 111


34/95

in a religious order. The first-born is consecrated to a gonpa, which is inevitably foundupon an elevation, at the entrance of every village. As soon as the child attains the age ofeighteen years, he is entrusted to the caravans which pass Lhassa, where he remains fromeight to fifteen years as a novice, in one of the gonpas which are near the city. There helearns to read and write, is taught the religious rites and studies the sacred parchments

written in the Pali language--which formerly used to be the language of the country ofMaguada, where, according to tradition, Buddha was born.

The oldest brother remaining in a family chooses a wife, who becomes common to hisbrothers. The choice of the bride and the nuptial ceremonies are most rudimentary. Whena wife and her husband have decided

p. 112

upon the marriage of a son, the brother who possesses the right of choice, pays a visit to aneighboring family in which there is a marriageable daughter.

The first and second visits are spent in more or less indifferent conversations, blendedwith frequent libations of tchang, and on the third visit only does the young man declarehis intention to take a wife. Upon this the girl is formally introduced to him. She isgenerally not unknown to the wooer, as, in Ladak, women never veil their faces.

A girl cannot be married without her consent. When the young man is accepted, he takeshis bride to his house, and she becomes his wife and also the wife of all his brothers. Afamily which has an only son sends him to a woman who has no more than two or threehusbands, and he offers himself to her

p. 113

as a fourth husband. Such an offer is seldom declined, and the young man settles in thenew family.

The newly married remain with the parents of the husbands, until the young wife bearsher first child. The day after that event, the grandparents of the infant make over the bulkof their fortune to the new family, and, abandoning the old home to them, seek othershelter.

Sometimes marriages are contracted between youth who have not reached a marriageableage, but in such event, the married couple are made to live apart, until they have attained

and even passed the age required. An unmarried girl who becomes enceinte, far frombeing exposed to the scorn of every one, is shown the highest respect for she isdemonstrated fruitful, and men

p. 114

eagerly seek her in marriage. A wife has the unquestioned right of having an unlimitednumber of husbands and lovers. If she likes a young man, she takes him home, announces


35/95

that he has been chosen by her as a "jingtuh" (a lover), and endows him with all thepersonal rights of a husband, which situation is accepted by her temporarily supplantedhusbands with a certain philosophic pleasure, which is the more pronounced if their wifehas proved sterile during the three first years of her marriage.

They certainly have here not even a vague idea of jealousy. The Thibetan's blood is toocold to know love, which, for him, would be almost an anachronism if indeed he werenot conscious that the sentiment of the entire community would be against him, as aflagrant violator of popular usage and established

p. 115

rights, in restraining the freedom of the women. The selfish enjoyment of love would be,in their eyes, an unjustifiable luxury.

In case of a husband's absence, his place may be offered to a bachelor or a widower. Thelatter are here in the minority, since the wife generally survives her feeble husbands.

Sometimes a Buddhist traveller, whom his affairs bring to the village, is chosen for thisoffice. A husband who travels, or seeks for work in the neighboring country, at every stoptakes advantage of his co-religionists' hospitality, who offer him their own wives. Thehusbands of a sterile woman exert themselves to find opportunities for hospitality, whichmay happily eventuate in a change in her condition, that they may be made happy fathers.

p. 116

The wife enjoys the general esteem, is ever of a cheerful disposition, takes part ineverything that is going on, goes and comes without any restriction, anywhere andeverywhere she pleases, with the exception of the principal prayer-room of the

monastery, entrance into which is formally prohibited to her.

Children know only their mother, and do not feel the least affection for their fathers, forthe simple reason that they have so many. Without approving polyandry, I could not well

blame Thibet for this institution, since without it, the population would prodigiouslyincrease. Famine and misery would fall upon the whole nation, with all the sinister

sequell of murder and theft, crimes so far absolutely unknown in the whole country.

p. 117

A FESTIVAL IN A GONPA.

Leh, the capital of Ladak, is a little town of 5,000 inhabitants, who live in white, two-story houses, upon two or three streets, principally. In its centre is the square of the

bazaar, where the merchants of India, China, Turkestan, Kachmyr and Thibet, come toexchange their products for the Thibetan gold. Here the natives provide themselves withcloths for themselves and their monks, and various objects of real necessity.


36/95

An old uninhabited palace rises upon a hill which dominates the town. Fronting thecentral square is a vast building, two

p. 118

stories in height, the residence of the governor of Ladak, the Vizier Souradjbal--a veryamiable and universally popular Pendjaban, who has received in London the degree ofDoctor of Philosophy.

To entertain me, during my sojourn in Leh, the governor arranged, on the bazaar square,a game of polo--the national sport of the Thibetans, which the English have adopted andintroduced into Europe. In the evening, after the game, the people executed dances and

played games before the governor's residence. Large bonfires illuminated the scene,lighting up the throng of inhabitants, who formed a great circle about the performers. Thelatter, in considerable numbers, disguised as animals, devils and sorcerers, jumped andcontorted themselves in rhythmic dances timed to the measure of

p. 119

the monotonous and unpleasing music made by two long trumpets and a drum.

The infernal racket and shouting of the crowd wearied me. The performance ended withsome graceful dances by Thibetan women, who spun upon their heels, swaying to andfro, and, in passing before the spectators in the windows of the residence, greeted us bythe clashing together of the copper and ivory bracelets on their crossed wrists.

The next day, at an early hour, I repaired to the great Himis convent, which, a littledistance from Leh, is elevated upon the top of a great rock, on a picturesque site,

commanding the valley of the Indies. It is one of the principal monasteries of the country,and is maintained by the gifts of the people and the subsidies it receives from Lhassa. Onthe road leading to it, beyond the bridge

p. 120

crossing the Indus, and in the vicinity of the villages lining the way, one finds heaps ofstones bearing engraved inscriptions, such as have already been described, andthorthenes. At these places, our guides were very careful to turn to the right. I wished toturn my horse to the left, but the Ladakians made him go back and led him by his halterto the right, explaining to me that such was their established usage. I found it impossibleto learn the origin or reason of this custom.

Above the gonpa rises a battlemented tower, visible from a great distance. We climbed,on foot, to the level on which the edifice stands and found ourselves confronted by alarge door, painted in brilliant colors, the portal of a vast two-story building enclosing acourt paved with little pebbles. To the right, in one of the angles of the

p. 121


37/95


38/95


39/95

pantaloons--came out of the temple, with bells and tambourines in their hands, and seatedthemselves opposite the gods, as representatives of the highest powers next to divinity.Lastly there entered upon the scene a lot of red and brown masks, with a "third eye"

painted on their breasts. With those who had preceded them, they formed two long linesof dancers, who to the thrumming of their many tambourines, the measured music of the

trumpets and drums, and the jingling of a myriad of bells, performed a dance,approaching and receding from each other, whirling in circles, forming by twos in acolumn and breaking from that formation to make new combinations, pausingoccasionally to make reverent obeisance before the gods.

After a time this spectacular excitement the noisy monotony of which began to weary

p. 129

me--calmed down a little gods, demigods, kings, men and spirits got up, and followed byall the other maskers, directed themselves toward the temple door, whence issued at once,meeting them, a lot of men admirably disguised as skeletons. All those sorties were

calculated and pre-arranged, and every one of them had its particular significance. The cortge of dancers gave way to the skeletons, who advanced with measured steps, insilence, to the masts, where they stopped and made a concerted clicking with pieces ofwood hanging at their sides, simulating perfectly the rattling of dry bones and gnashing of teeth. Twice they went in a circle around the masts, marching in time to low taps on thedrums, and then joined in a lugubrious religious chant. Having once more made theconcerted rattling of their artificial bones

p. 130

and jaws, they executed some contortions painful to witness and together stopped.

Then they seized upon an image of the Enemy of Man--made of some sort of brittlepaste--which had been placed at the foot of one of the masts. This they broke in piecesand scattered, and the oldest men among the spectators, rising from their places, pickedup the fragments which they handed to the skeletons--an action supposed to signify thatwould soon be ready to join the bony crew in the cemetery.

The chief lama, approaching me, tendered an invitation to accompany him to theprincipal terrace and partake of the festal "tchang" which I accepted with pleasure, for

my head was dizzy from the long spectacle.p. 131

We crossed the court and climbed a staircase--obstructed with prayer-wheels, as usual--passed two rooms where there were many images of gods, and came out upon the terrace,where I seated myself upon a bench opposite the venerable lama, whose eyes sparkledwith spirit.


40/95


41/95

all things. Man has always sought for tangible things. It was not possible for him tobelieve long in that which escaped his material senses. He has racked his brain to andmeans for contemplating the Creator has endeavored to enter into direct relations withhim who has done him so much good,

p. 135

and also, as he erroneously believes, so much evil. For this reason he began to adoreevery phase of nature from which he received benefits. We see a striking example of thisin the ancient Egyptians, who adored animals, trees, stones, the winds and the rain. Other

peoples, who were more sunk in ignorance, seeing that the results of the wind were notalways beneficent, and that the rain did not inevitably bring good harvests, and that theanimals were not willingly subservient to man, began to seek for direct intermediaries

between themselves and the great mysterious and unfathomable power of the Creator.Therefore they made for themselves idols, which they regarded as indifferent to thingsconcerning them, but to whose interposition in their behalf, they might always recur.From remotest antiquity to our own days,

p. 136

man was ever inclined only to tangible realities.

"While seeking a route to lead their feet to the Creator, the Assyrians turned their eyestoward the stars, which they contemplated without the power of attaining them. TheGuebers have conserved the same belief to our days. In their nullity and spiritual

blindness, men are incapable of conceiving the invisible spiritual bond which unites themto the great Divinity, and this explains why I they have always sought for palpable things,which were in the domain of the senses, and I by doing which they minimized the divine

principle. Nevertheless, they have dared to attribute to their visible and man-made imagesa divine and eternal existence. We can see the same fact in Brahminism, where man,given to his inclination for exterior

p. 137

forms, has created, little by little, and not all at once, an army of gods and demi-gods. TheIsraelites may be said to have demonstrated, in the most flagrant way, the love of man foreverything which is concrete. In spite of a series of striking miracles accomplished by thegreat Creator, who is the same for all the peoples, the Jewish people could not helpmaking a god of metal in the very minute when their prophet Mossa spoke to them of theCreator! Buddhism has passed through the same modifications. Our great reformer,Sakya-Muni, inspired by the Supreme Judge, understood truly the one and] indivisibleBrahma, and forbade his disciples attempting to manufacture images in imaginarysemblance of him. He had openly broken from the polytheistic Brahmins, and appreciatedthe purity, oneness and immortality

p. 138


42/95

of Brahma. The success he achieved by his teachings in making disciples among thepeople, brought upon hint persecution by the Brahmins, who, in the creation of new gods,had found a source of personal revenue, and who, contrary to the law of God, treated the

people in a despotic manner. Our first sacred teachers, to whom we give the name ofbuddhas--which means, learned men or saints--because the great Creator has incarnated

in them, settled in different countries of the globe. As their teachings attacked especiallythe tyranny of the Brahmins and the misuse they made of the idea of God--of which theyindeed made a veritable business--almost all the Buddhistic converts, they who followedthe doctrines of those great teachers, were among the common people of China and India.Among those teachers,

p. 139

particular reverence is felt for the Buddha, Sakya-Muni, known in China also under thename of F, who lived three thousand years ago, and whose teachings brought all China

back into the path of the true God and the Buddha, Gautama, who lived two thousandfive hundred years ago, and converted almost half the Hindus to the knowledge of the

impersonal, indivisible and only God, besides whom there is none.

"Buddhism is divided into many sects which, by the way, differ only in certain religiousceremonies, the basis of the doctrine being everywhere the same. The ThibetanBuddhists, who are called 'lamaists,' separated themselves from the F-ists fifteenhundred years ago. Until that time we had formed part of the worshippers of the Buddha,F-Sakya-Muni, who was the first to collect all

p. 140

the laws compiled by the various buddhas preceding him, when the great schism took

place in the bosom of Brahmanism. Later on, a Khoutoukhte-Mongol translated intoChinese the books of the great Buddha, for which the Emperor of China rewarded him bybestowing upon him the title of 'Go-Chi--'Preceptor of the King!' After his death, this titlewas given to the Dalai-Lama of Thibet. Since that epoch, all the titularies of this positionhave borne the title of Go-Chi. Our religion is called the Lamaic one--from the word'lama,' superior. It admits of two classes of monks, the red and the yellow. The formermay marry, and they recognize the authority of the Bantsine, who resides in TechowLoumba, and is chief of the civil administration in Thibet. We, the yellow lamas, havetaken the vow of celibacy, and

p. 141

our direct chief is the Dalai-Lama. This is the difference which separates the tworeligious orders, the respective rituals of which are identical."

"Do all perform mysteries similar to that which I have just witnessed?"

"Yes with a few exceptions. Formerly these festivals were celebrated with very solemnpomp, but since the conquest of Ladak our convents have been, more than once, pillaged


43/95


44/95

p. 145

[paragraph continues] Israelites. It is about 2,000 years ago that the Perfect Being, awaking oncemore for a short time from his inaction, incarnated in the new-born child of a poor family.It was his will that this little child should enlighten the unhappy upon the life of the worldto conic and bring erring men back into the path of truth showing to them, by his own

example, the way they could best return to the primitive morality and purity of our race.When this sacred child attained a certain age, he was brought to India, where, until heattained to manhood. he studied the laws of the great Buddha, who dwells eternally inheaven."

"In what language are written the principal scrolls bearing upon the life of Issa?" I asked,rising from my seat, for I saw that my interesting interlocutor evidenced fatigue,

p. 146

and had just given a twirl to his prayer-wheel, as if to hint the closing of the conversation.

"The original scrolls brought from India to Nepaul, and from Nepaul to Thibet, relating tothe life of Issa, are written in the Pali language and are actually in Lhassa but a copy inour language--I mean the Thibetan--is in this convent."

"How is Issa looked upon in Thibet? Has he the repute of a saint?"

"The people are not even aware that he ever existed. Only the principal lamas, who knowof him through having studied the scrolls in which his life is related, are familiar with hisname but, as his doctrine does not constitute a canonical part of Buddhism, and theworshippers of Issa do not recognize the authority of the Dalai-Lama, the prophet

p. 147

[paragraph continues] Issa--with many others like him--is not recognized in Thibet as one of theprincipal saints."

"Would you commit a sin in reciting your copy of the life of Issa to a stranger?" I askedhim.

"That which belongs to God," he answered me, "belongs also to man. Our duty requiresus to cheerfully devote ourselves to the propagation of His doctrine. Only, I do not, at

present, know where that manuscript is. If you ever visit our gonpa again, I shall takepleasure in showing it to you."

At this moment two monks entered, and uttered to the chief lama a few wordsunintelligible to me.

"I am called to the sacrifices. Will you kindly excuse me?" said he to me, and,

p. 148


45/95

with a salute, turned to the door and disappeared.

I could do no better than withdraw and lie down in the chamber which was assigned tome. and where I spent the night.

In the evening of the next day I was again in Leh--thinking of how to get back to theconvent. Two days later I sent, by a messenger, to the chief lama, as presents, a watch, analarm clock, and a thermometer. At the same time I sent the message that before leavingLadak I would probably return to the convent, in the hope that he would permit me to seethe manuscript which had been the subject of our conversation. It was now my purpose togain Kachmyr and return from there, some time later,

p. 149

to Himis. But fate made a different decision for me.

In passing a mountain, on a height of which is perched the gonpa of Piatak, my horsemade a false step, throwing me to the ground so violently that my right leg was broken

below the knee.

It was impossible to continue my journey, I was not inclined to return to Leh and seekingthe hospitality of the gonpa, of Piatak was not, from the appearance of the cloister, anenticing prospect. My best recourse would be to return to Himis, .then only about half aday's journey distant, and I ordered my servants to transport me there. They bandaged my

broken leg--an operation which caused me great pain--and lifted me into the saddle. Onecarrier walked by my side, supporting the weight of the injured

p. 150

member, while another led my horse. At a late hour of the evening we reached the doorof the convent of Himis.

When informed of my accident, the kind monks came out to receive me and, with awealth of extraordinary precautions of tenderness, I was carried inside, and, in one oftheir best rooms, installed upon an improvised bed, consisting of a mountain of soft.fabrics, with the naturally-to-be-expected prayer-cylinder beside me. All this was donefor me under the personal supervision of their chief lama, who, with affectionate

sympathy, pressed the hand I gave him in expression of my thanks for his kindness.

In the morning, I myself bound around the injured limb little oblong pieces of wood, heldby cords, to serve as splints. Then I remained perfectly quiescent and nature was

p. 151


46/95

not slow in her reparative work. Within two days my condition was so far improved that Icould, had it been necessary, have left the gonpa and directed myself slowly toward Indiain search of a surgeon to complete my cure.

While a boy kept in motion the prayer-barrel near my bed, the venerable lama who ruled

the convent entertained me with many interesting stories. Frequently he took from theirbox the alarm clock and the watch, that I might illustrate to him the process of windingthem and explain to him their uses. At length, yielding to my ardent insistence, he

brought me two big books, the large leaves of which were of paper yellow with age, andfrom them read to me the biography of Issa, which I carefully transcribed in my travellingnote-book according to the translation

p. 152

made by the interpreter. This curious document is compiled under the form of isolatedverses, which, as placed, very often had no apparent connection with, or relation to eachother.

On the third day, my condition was so far improved as to permit the prosecution of myjourney. Having bound up my leg as well as possible, I returned, across Kachmyr, toIndia a slow journey, of twenty days, filled with intolerable pain. Thanks, however, to alitter, which a French gentleman, M. Peicheau, had kindly sent to me (my gratitude forwhich I take this occasion to express), and to an ukase of the Grand Vizier of theMaharajah of Kachmyr, ordering the local authorities to provide me with carriers, Ireached Srinagar, and left almost immediately,

p. 153

being anxious to gain India before the first snows fell.

In Mur I encountered another Frenchman, Count Andr de Saint Phall, who was makinga journey of recreation across Hindostan. During the whole course, which we madetogether, to Bombay, the young count demonstrated a touching solicitude for me, andsympathy for the excruciating pain I suffered from my broken leg and the fever induced

by its torture. I cherish for him sincere gratitude, and shall never forget the friendly carewhich I received upon my arrival in Bombay from the Marquis de Mors, the Vicomte deBreteul, M. Monod, of the Comptoir dEscompte, M. Mot, acting consul, and all themembers of the very sympathetic French colony there.

During a long time I revolved in my mindp. 154

the purpose of publishing the memoirs of the life of Jesus Christ found by me in Himis,of which I have spoken, but other interests absorbed my attention and delayed it. Onlynow, after having passed long nights of wakefulness in the co-ordination of my notes and


47/95


48/95


49/95


50/95


51/95

7. To reward them for adhering to the

p. 165

path of truth, God blessed the first-born of this family chose him for His elect, and senthim to sustain the fallen and comfort the afflicted.

8. The divine child, to whom the name Issa was given, commenced in his tender years totalk of the only and indivisible God, exhorting the strayed souls to repent and purifythemselves from the sins of which they had become guilty.

9. People came from all parts to hear him, and marvelled at the discourses which camefrom his infantile mouth and all Israel agreed that the Spirit of the Eternal dwelt in thischild.

10. When Issa was thirteen years old, the age at which an Israelite is expected to marry,

11. The modest house of his industrious

p. 166

parents became a meeting-place of the rich and illustrious, who were anxious to have as ason-in-law the young Issa, who was already celebrated for the edifying discourses hemade in the name of the All-Powerful.

12. Then Issa secretly absented himself from his father's house left Jerusalem, and, in atrain of merchants, journeyed toward the Sindh,

13. With the object of perfecting himself in the knowledge of the word of God and thestudy of the laws of the great Buddhas.

V.

1. In his fourteenth year, young Issa, the Blessed One, came this side of the Sindh andsettled among the Aryas, in the country beloved by God.

p. 167

2. Fame spread the name of the marvellous youth along the northern Sindh, and when hecame through the country of the five streams and Radjipoutan, the devotees of the godDjane asked him to stay among them.

3. But he left the deluded worshippers of Djane and went to Djagguernat, in the countryof Orsis, where repose the mortal remains of Vyassa-Krishna, and where the white priestsof Brahma welcomed him joyfully.


52/95


53/95


54/95

they should pray, in order not to lose their hold upon eternal life.

26. "Pray not to idols, for they cannot hear you hearken not to the Vedas where the truthis altered be humble and humiliate not your fellow-man.

27. "Help the poor, support the weak, do evil to none covet not that which ye have notand which belongs to others."

Footnotes

168:* The Vaisyas and Sudras castes.

VI.

1. The white priests and the warriors, * who had learned of Issa's discourse to the Sudras,resolved upon his death, and sent their servants to find the young teacher and slay him.

2. But Issa, warned by the Sudras of his

p. 174

danger, left by night Djagguernat, gained the mountain, and settled in the country of theGautamides, where the great Buddha Sakya-Muni came to the world, among a people

who worshipped the only and sublime Brahma.

3. When the just Issa had acquired the Pali language, he applied himself to the study ofthe sacred scrolls of the Sutras.

4. After six years of study, Issa, whom the Buddha had elected to spread his holy word,could perfectly expound the sacred scrolls.

5. He then left Nepaul and the Himalaya mountains, descended into the valley ofRadjipoutan and directed his steps toward the West, everywhere preaching to the peoplethe supreme perfection attainable by man

6. And the good he must do to his fellowmen,

p. 175

which is the sure means of speedy union with the eternal Spirit. "He who has recoveredhis primitive purity," said Issa, "shall die with his transgressions forgiven and have theright to contemplate the majesty of God."
http://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/uljc/uljc11.htmhttp://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/uljc/uljc10.htm


55/95


56/95


57/95

12. When the Pagans saw that the power of their priests was naught, they put faith in thewords of Issa. Fearing the anger of the true God, they broke their idols to pieces andcaused their priests to flee from among them.

13. Issa furthermore taught the Pagans that they should not endeavor to see the eternal

Spirit with their eyes but to perceive Him with their hearts, and makep. 181

themselves worthy of His favors by the purity of their souls.

14. "Not only," he said to them, "must ye refrain from offering human sacrifices, but yemay not lay on the altar any creature to which life has been given, for all things createdare for man.

15. "Withhold not from your neighbor his just due, for this would be like stealing fromhim what he had earned in the sweat of his brow.

16. "Deceive none, that ye may not yourselves be deceived seek to justify yourselvesbefore the last judgment, for then it will be too late.

17. "Be not given to debauchery, for it is a violation of the law of God.

18. "That you may attain to supreme bliss ye must not only purify yourselves, but

p. 182

must also guide others into the path that will enable them to regain their primitive

innocence."

VIII.

1. The countries round about were filled with the renown of Issa's preachings, and whenhe came unto Persia, the priests grew afraid and forbade the people hearing him

2. Nevertheless, the villages received him with joy, and the people hearkened intently tohis words, which, being seen by the priests, caused them to order that he should be

arrested and brought before their High Priest, who asked him:

3. "Of what new God dost thou speak? Knowest thou not, unfortunate man that thou art!that Saint Zoroaster is the only Just

p. 183


58/95

[paragraph continues] One, to whom alone was vouchsafed the honor of receiving revelationsfrom the Most High

4. "By whose command the angels compiled His Word in laws for the governance of Hispeople, which were given to Zoroaster in Paradise?

5. "Who, then, art thou, who darest utter blasphemies against our God and sow doubt inthe hearts of believers?"

6. And Issa said to them: "I preach no new God, but our celestial Father, who has existedbefore the beginning and will exist until after the end.

7. "Of Him I have spoken to the people, who--even as innocent children--are incapable ofcomprehending God by their own intelligence, or fathoming the sublimity of the divineSpirit

p. 184

8. "But, as the new-born child in the night recognizes the mother's breast, so your people,held in the darkness of error by your pernicious doctrines and religious ceremonies, haverecognized instinctively their Father, in the Father whose prophet I am.

9. "The eternal Being says to your people, by my mouth, 'Ye shall not adore the sun, for itis but a part of the universe which I have created for man

10. "It rises to warm you during your work it sets to accord to you the rest that I haveordained.

11. "To me only ye owe all that ye possess, all that surrounds you and that is above andbelow you.'"

12. "But," said the priests, "how could the people live according to your rules if they hadno teachers?"

p. 185

13. Whereupon Issa answered: "So long as they had no priests, they were governed by thenatural law and conserved the simplicity of their souls

14. "Their souls were in God and to commune with the Father they had not to haverecourse to the intermediation of idols, or animals, or fire, as taught by you.

15. "Ye pretend that man must adore the sun, and the Genii of Good and Evil. But I sayunto you that your doctrine is pernicious. The sun does not act spontaneously, but by thewill of the invisible Creator, who has given to it being."


59/95


60/95

2. Since the departure therefrom of Issa, the Pagans had caused the Israelites to enduremore atrocious sufferings than before, and they were filled with despair.

3. Many among them had begun to neglect the laws of their God and those of Mossa, inthe hope of winning the favor of their brutal conquerors.

4. But Issa, notwithstanding their unhappy condition, exhorted his countrymen not todespair, because the day of their redemption from the yoke of sin was near, and hehimself, by his example, confirmed their faith in the God of their fathers.

5. "Children, yield not yourselves to despair," said the celestial Father to them, throughthe mouth of Issa, "for I have heard

p. 189

your lamentations, and your cries have reached my cars.

6. "Weep not, oh, my beloved sons! for your griefs have touched the heart of your Fatherand He has forgiven you, as He forgave your ancestors.

7. "Forsake not your families to plunge into debauchery stain not the nobility of yoursouls adore not idols which cannot but remain deaf to your supplications.

8. "Fill my temple with your hope and your patience, and do not adjure the religion ofyour forefathers, for I have guided them and bestowed upon them of my beneficence.

9. "Lift up those who are fallen feed the hungry and help the sick, that ye may bealtogether pure and just in the day of the last judgment which I prepare for you."

10. The Israelites came in multitudes to

p. 190

listen to Issa's words and they asked him where they should thank their Heavenly Father,since their enemies had demolished their temples and robbed them of their sacred vessels.

11. Issa told them that God cared not for temples erected by human hands, but that humanhearts were the true temples of God.

12. "Enter into your temple, into your heart illuminate it with good thoughts, withpatience and the unshakeable faith which you owe to your Father.

13. "And your sacred vessels! they are your hands and your eyes. Look to do that whichis agreeable to God, for in doing good to your fellow-men, you perform a ceremony thatembellishes the temple wherein abideth Him who has created you.

p. 191


61/95

14. "For God has created you in His own image, innocent, with pure souls, and hearts'filled with kindness and not made for the planning of evil, but to be the sanctuaries oflove and justice.

15. "Therefore, I say unto you, soil not your hearts with evil, for in them the Eternal

Being abides.16. "When ye do works of devotion and love, let them be with full hearts, and see that themotives of your actions be not hopes of gain or self-interest

17. For actions, so impelled, will not bring you nearer to salvation, but lead to a state ofmoral degradation wherein theft, lying and murder pass for generous deeds."

X.

1. Issa went from one city to another,

p. 192

strengthening by the word of God the courage of the Israelites, who were bear tosuccumbing under their weight of woe, and thousands of the people followed him to hearhis teachings.

2. But the chiefs of the cities were afraid of him and they informed the principalgovernor, residing in Jerusalem, that a man called Issa had arrived in the country, who by

his sermons had arrayed the people against the authorities, and that multitudes, listeningassiduously to him, neglected their labor and, they added, he said that in a short timethey would be free of their invader rulers.

3. Then Pilate, the Governor of Jerusalem, gave orders that they should lay hold of thepreacher Issa and bring him before the judges. In order, however, not to excite the

p. 193

anger of the populace, Pilate directed that he should be judged by the priests and scribes,the Hebrew elders, in their temple.

4. Meanwhile, Issa, continuing his preachings, arrived at Jerusalem, and the people, whoalready knew his fame, having learned of his coming, went out to meet him.

5. They greeted him respectfully and opened to him the doors of their temple, to hearfrom his mouth what he had said in other cities of Israel.


62/95


63/95

15. Then the elders asked him: "Who art thou, and from what country hast thou come tous? We have not formerly heard thee spoken of and do not even know thy name!"

16. "I am an Israelite," answered Issa "and on the day of my birth have seen the walls ofJerusalem, and have heard the sobs of my brothers reduced to slavery, and the

lamentations of my sisters carried away by the Pagans17. "And my soul was afflicted when I saw that my brethren had forgotten the true God.When a child I left my father's house to go and settle among other people.

18. "But, having heard it said that my brethren suffered even greater miseries now,

p. 197

[paragraph continues] I have come back to the land of my fathers, to recall my brethren to thefaith of their ancestors, which teaches us patience upon earth in order to attain the perfectand supreme bliss above."

19. Then the wise old men put to him again this question: "We are told that thoudisownest the laws of Mossa, and that thou teachest the people to forsake the temple ofGod?"

20. Whereupon Issa: "One does not demolish that which has been given by our HeavenlyFather, and which has been destroyed by sinners. I have but enjoined the people to purifythe heart of all stains, for it is the veritable temple of God.

21. "As regards the laws of Mossa, I have endeavored to re-establish them in the hearts ofmen and I say unto you that ye ignore

p. 198

their true meaning, for it is not vengeance but pardon which they teach. Their sense hasbeen perverted."

XI.

1. When the priests and the elders heard Issa, they decided among themselves not to give

judgment against him, for he had done no harm to any one, and, presenting themselvesbefore Pilate--who was made Governor of Jerusalem by the Pagan king of the country ofRomeles--they spake to him thus:

2. "We have seen the man whom thou chargest with inciting our people to revolt wehave heard his discourses and know that he is our countryman

3. "But the chiefs of the cities have made to you false reports, for he is a just man, who


64/95

p. 199

teaches the people the word of God. After interrogating him, we have allowed him to goin peace."

4. The governor thereupon became very angry, and sent his disguised spies to keep watchupon Issa and report to the authorities the least word he addressed to the people.

5. In the meantime, the holy Issa continued to visit the neighboring cities and preach thetrue way of the Lord, enjoining the Hebrews patience and promising them speedydeliverance.

6. And all the time great numbers of the people followed him wherever he went, andmany did not leave him at all, but attached themselves to him and served him.

7. And Issa said: "Put not your faith in miracles performed by the hands of men, for Hewho rules nature is alone capable of doing

p. 200

supernatural things, while man is impotent to arrest the wrath of the winds or cause therain to fall.

8. "One miracle, however, is within the power of man to accomplish. It is, when his heartis filled with sincere faith, he resolves to root out from his mind all evil promptings anddesires, and when, in order to attain this end, he ceases to walk the path of iniquity.

9. "All the things done without God are only gross errors, illusions and seductions,

serving but to show how much the heart of the doer is full of presumption, falsehood andimpurity.

10. "Put not your faith in oracles. God alone knows the future. He who has recourse tothe diviners soils the temple of his heart and shows his lack of faith in his Creator.

p. 201

11. "Belief in the diviners and their miracles destroys the innate simplicity of man and hischildlike purity. An infernal power takes hold of him who so errs, and forces him tocommit various sins and give himself to the worship of idols.

12. "But the Lord our God, to whom none can be equalled, is one omnipotent, omniscientand omnipresent He alone possesses all wisdom and all light.

13. "To Him ye must address yourselves, to be comforted in your afflictions, aided inyour works, healed in your sickness and whoso asks of Him, shall not ask in vain.


65/95

14. "The secrets of nature are in the hands of God, for the whole world, before it wasmade manifest, existed in the bosom of the divine thought, and has become material andvisible by the will of the Most High.

p. 202

15. "When ye pray to him, become again like little children, for ye know neither the past,nor the present, nor the future, and God is the Lord of Time."

XII.

1. "Just man," said to him the disguised spies of the Governor of Jerusalem, "tell us if wemust continue to do the will of Csar, or expect our near deliverance?"

2. And Issa, who recognized the questioners as the apostate spies sent to follow him,replied to them: "I have not told you that you would be delivered from Csar it is thesoul sunk in error which will gain its deliverance.

3. "There cannot be a family without a head, and there cannot be order in a people

p. 203

without a Csar, whom ye should implicitly obey, as he will be held to answer for hisacts before the Supreme Tribunal."

4. "Does Csar possess a divine right?" the spies asked him again "and is he the best ofmortals?"

5. "There is no one 'the best' among human beings but there are many bad, who--even asthe sick need physicians--require the care of those chosen for that mission, in which must

be used the means given by the sacred law of our Heavenly Father

6. "Mercy and justice are the high prerogati

Nicholas Notovich

Documents

Transcript of Nicholas Notovich